Troubleshooting
So you got the Chromatic Chronometer all assembled, but it doesn't work..... Tools you will need for troubleshooting. * Multimeter * Reliable 3.3v power source * Solder sucker, or solder wick Symptom: '''Hot voltage regulator & no LED test pattern First check the voltage from your wall wart connector. Your volt meter should read 5V, if it reads -5V you need to switch the leads. Remove master arc segment. Apply to 3.3V to see if test pattern displays. You should see a white test pattern followed by clock pattern. The 2nd LED (the one just above the round hole in the PCB at the 12:00 position) is the first one that lights up. The rest should follow in sequence. The previous LED will not light because its data comes from the previous PCB, which isn't connected. After that, you'll see (part of) the green hour indicator lit, and the 1:00 LED faintly lit white. '''Symptom: '''During the startup sequence, not all of the LEDs are working This is often the result of an LED not making full contact with the PCB on all four pins. Starting as the 12:00 position and working clockwise, determine which LED is the first to malfunction (e.g., not light up or light sporadically). Confirm that all four pins are making good connected with their pads on this LED ''and on the previous ''(counterclockwise) LED. It may be necessary to reflow the solder on all four pins. In cases where the LED is askew, it may be necessary to completely remove the LED and reinstall it. I found that I had issues on a couple of mine on assembly. It was pretty easy for me to identify, because they were the ones that didn't light up. I went in and re-flowed the solder on the 4 pins on that LED and the one before and after it. Once I did that, it seemed fine. I had a couple days of use and had a couple others pop up (the same original one at the 5" mark and now another at the 30" mark). I will resolder them and I believe I should be good to go. '''Symptom: '''The voltage regulator gets very hot when powered on First things first: unplug the clock unless you are actively troubleshooting. We don't want to stress the device more than we need to. This can be an indication of a short. First, verify that the input voltage's polarity is correct. While powered up, test that the 3.3V pads have the proper voltage (3.3 volts!) compared to GND. If they do not, remove the slave segment with the voltage regulator and perform the same test. If they now read 3.3V, the short is elsewhere on the clock. If they still don't read as 3.3V, unpower the clock and test for a short between 3.3 and GND. If one doesn't exist, it may be a broken voltage regulator. '''Symptom: '''Help! I think lifted (broke) a pad on a PCB Depending what's broken, you may be able to salvage it. If you've lifted a pad from '''back of a an arc segment PCB, you may still be able to use a different arc segment and be just fine. For instance, if you've lifted (broken) one of the voltage regulator pads, you can select a different arc segment on which to solder the voltage regulator. Likewise, if the master segment breaks a rear pad while soldering, select a different segment to be the master segment and ignore the broken, unused pad on what is now a slave segment.